History Creator / JeanPaulBelmondo

** Belmondo was supposed to star in ''Barracuda'', a film about a HostageSituation in Chad. {{Creative differences}} and Belmondo's commitment to ''Le Professionnel'' killed the project, although ''Le Professionnel'' retained the ''françafrique'' thing (French meddling in post-colonial African politics).

The son of sculptor Paul Belmondo, he started a boxing career before shifting to acting. His [[StarMakingRole rise to national and international stardom]] came with UsefulNotes/FrenchNewWave vehicles such as Creator/JeanLucGodard's ''Film/{{Breathless}}'' and ''Film/PierrotLeFou'' as well as dramas such as Creator/JeanPierreMelville's ''Film/LeonMorinPriest'', ''Film/MagnetOfDoom'' and Henri Verneuil's ''Film/AMonkeyInWinter''. He would remain a very successful leading man in French cinema throughout TheSixties, TheSeventies and TheEighties and became one of the highest-grossing actors of all time at the French box office, only equaled by the likes of Creator/AlainDelon (his longtime friend), Creator/LouisDeFunes or Creator/GerardDepardieu.

* ''Film/LesMiserables1995'' (1995) as Henri Fortin / Jean Valjean

* ''Literature/LesMiserables'' (1995) as Henri Fortin / Jean Valjean

* NoStuntDouble: A prime example, as he did much of the body stunt work in his films on his own between 1962 and 1987, which caused him plenty of injuries. For car stunts as well, though he would sometimes leave it to his stuntman friend Creator/RemyJulienne when closeups were not needed. The very last stunt he did was climbing a rope ladder under a helicopter that lifts off in the 1998 action comedy ''Half a Chance'' when he was 65.

He was the father of four, including Patricia (1953-1993, died in a house fire), Paul Alexandre (born in 1963, became a race car pilot), Florence (born in 1960) and Stella (born in 2003). One of his grandchildren, Victor (son of Paul Alexandre, born 1993) followed in his footsteps and became an actor.

** He has frequently worked with Jean-Paul Rappeneau as either screenwriter, director or both.

* LovableRogue: A strong contender for the quintessential example in French cinema as the thieves and bank robbers he played, usually in comedies, were often either TheCharmer (''Cartouche'') or [[LargeHam hammy]] goofballs (''L'Incorrigible'', ''Le Guignolo'', ''Hold-up'').

His film career slowly declined starting in the second half of the 1980s and he focused more on stage work instead, with his runs in that field such as Creator/JeanPaulSartre's ''Kean'' and Edmon Rostand's ''Theatre/CyranoDeBergerac'' becoming big popular successes. He won the César Award for Best Actor in 1989 for his role in Claude Lelouch's film ''Itinerary of a Spoiled Child'', but didn't show up at the ceremony, treating it like a [[invoked]]ConsolationAward. He suffered a brain-damaging stroke in 2001 and retired from acting, only returning for one last role on the big screen in 2009. He passed away at age 88 on September 6, 2021 and received a national homage at the Invalides in UsefulNotes/{{Paris}}.

His career slowly declined starting in the late 1980s. He won the César Award for Best Actor in 1989 for his role in Claude lelouch's ''Itinerary of a Spoiled Child'', but didn't show up at the ceremony, treating it like a [[invoked]]ConsolationAward. He suffered a brain-damaging stroke in 2001 and retired from acting, only returning for one last role on the big screen in 2009. He passed away at age 88 on September 6, 2021 and received a national homage at the Invalides in UsefulNotes/{{Paris}}.

* ''Hold-up'' (1985) as Grimm

* GermansLoveDavidHasselhoff - like many French actors of his generation, Belmondo was greatly beloved in the former USSR.

* BilledAboveTheTitle: In TheSeventies and TheEighties when he was working with publicist and editor René Chateau, Belmondo's name was always above the title (and often bigger than the title) on the posters of his films. Since he was a superstar, his name alone would easily sell a film.

* LeslieNielsenSyndrome: He had a noticeable comedic shift in his late 1960s roles which would intensify in the mid-1970s with ''Film/LeMagnifique'', although he never stopped playing dramatic roles alongside them.

* BilledAboveTheTitle: In TheSeventies and TheEighties when he was working with publicist and editor René Chateau, Belmondo's name was always above the title (and often bigger than the title) on the posters of his films. Since he was a superstar, his name alone would sell a film.

* [[invoked]]FanNickname: He is often nicknamed "Bébel" in France.

The son of sculptor Paul Belmondo, he started a boxing career before shifting to acting. His [[StarMakingRole rise to national and international stardom]] came with UsefulNotes/FrenchNewWave vehicles such as Creator/JeanLucGodard's ''Film/{{Breathless}}'' and ''Film/PierrotLeFou'' as well as dramas such as Creator/JeanPierreMelville's ''Film/LeonMorinPriest'' and ''Film/MagnetOfDoom'' and Henri Verneuil's ''Film/AMonkeyInWinter''. He would remain a very successful leading man in French cinema throughout TheSixties, TheSeventies and TheEighties and became one of the highest-grossing actors of all time at the French box office, only equaled by the likes of Creator/AlainDelon (his longtime friend), Creator/LouisDeFunes or Creator/GerardDepardieu.

* FanNickname: He is often nicknamed "Bébel" in France.

* BilledAboveTheTitle: In TheSeventies and TheEighties when he was working with publicist and editor René Chateau, Belmondo's name was always above the title (and often bigger than the title) on the posters if his films. Since he was a superstar, his name alone would sell a film.

* DefiniteArticleTitle: Many of his most popular films' titles start with "le" (French masculine translation of "the").

Jean-Paul Charles Belmondo (April 9, 1933 - September 6, 2021) was a French actor of Italian descent.

* NoStuntDouble: A prime example, as he did much of the body stunt work in his films on his own between 1962 and 1987, which caused him plenty of injuries. For car stunts as well, though he would sometimes leave it to his stuntman friend Creator/RemyJulienne when closeups were not needed.